Targeting Th17 cell adaptation in renal autoimmune diseases (A05)

• Subject Area: Nephrology
• Term: since 2016
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 264599542

On the basis of our previous findings, we aim now to uncover the molecular basis for renal Th17 cell tissue adaptation and to target Th17 cell responses in a therapeutic approach. We specifically aim to 1.) perform cross-tissue T cell analysis in human glomerulonephritis from the peripheral blood, intestine, lung and kidney and to analyze the intestinal microbiota composition and metabolome in these patients; 2.) target the transcriptional regulation of Th17 cell adaptation and the development of tissue-resident memory Th17 cells in the kidney; and 3) investigate the impact of intestinal microbiota on Th17 cell adaptation and T cell clonality in experimental GN. Our long-term goal is to identify mechanisms shifting Th17 cells towards a regulatory phenotype that could be used as a therapeutic strategy in patients with glomerulonephritis in the future.

• DFG Programme: Collaborative Research Centres
• Subproject of: SFB 1192: Immune-Mediated Glomerular Diseases - Basic Concepts and Clinical Implications -
• Applicant Institution: Universität Hamburg
• Project Heads: Professor Dr. Samuel Huber; Professor Dr. Christian Krebs